Against the Odds
by Lindelas
Summary: Snakes, treacherous females, older brothers that are ready to murder him...Little Joe is in trouble again. First Bonanza story. Non-slash.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Adam Cartwright would always go after his little brother. No matter the circumstances, Adam was fairly certain that there was no trouble in the world Little Joe could get himself into that he and Hoss could not extract him from. The question was, whether the trouble or his brothers would kill Joe first.

"_What_ was he thinking?!" Adam gritted angrily between his teeth.

"I don't know, but when I find him, I'm gonna pin his ears back." Hoss vowed solemnly.

"I told him to stay away from that girl. Why doesn't he ever listen?" Adam was pacing through the living room. His face was set in anger, but Hoss knew well enough that it was only a thin mask disguising his worry for Little Joe. Adam always felt responsible for his younger brothers, especially Joe who had a penchant for trouble as big as the state of Nevada.

"Now Adam, you know as well as I do that Little Joe don't hear so good when it comes to pretty gals." Hoss soothed.

"Yes, and it's going to get him killed someday." Adam shut his eyes and stopped pacing for a moment. "I wish Pa were here." he added quietly.

"We'll have Little Joe back by the time Pa gets home."

"I hope you're right."

--

Joe swore to himself that he'd never get involved with women again as long as he lived. He swore it to himself again and again as he attempted to free himself from the tight ropes that held him bound against a beam.

She had seemed like such a nice girl too. Curly, golden hair, deep limpid blue eyes, full red lips, soft, sweet voice. She was short too. Little Joe liked that. If a girl was tall, well... Joe shook his head. Too bad she was such a treacherous little...

Adam and Hoss were going to kill him.

"Comfortable, Little Joe?" The door opened to admit the beautiful girl herself. Her perfect profile was outlined against the light of the door.

Joe pursed his lips and glared. After a day and a half of being tied up, his hands had gone completely numb and his entire body was stiff and sore from remaining in the same position so long. To top it off, they hadn't given him anything to eat. "Never been so comfortable in my life." He quipped.

"Good. It shouldn't be too much longer. Your family received the message yesterday."

"You're assuming my family will meet your demands, Ally. Maybe they don't care what happens to me." Joe said dispassionately. It was a weak attempt, but he had to try.

Ally Forster smiled knowingly. "I met your family, Little Joe. They care. They care a great deal more than I do what happens to you."

Joe resisted the urge to wince. That hurt. He really had thought she cared for him. "You're quite the little actress, aren't you?"

She bowed dramatically. "My family and I have to make a living somehow. And I'll tell you something, Little Joe-- you're only one among many young men I've had eating out of my hand, pouring out their hearts to me and swearing undying love." She laughed mirthlessly. "I've gotten used to it. You're nothing special." She knelt in front of him, looking into his bold young eyes. Something bordering tenderness flickered briefly across her features. "Or maybe you are."

She laid a hand on his cheek and he shrugged away, picking a spot on the dark wall to stare at. "What happens to me if they don't meet the ransom?"

"Such gloomy thoughts for such a beautiful day!" Miss Forster chided.

"I don't like surprises."

The woman stood to her feet and went to the door, her expression carefully masked again. "Let's just say, for your sake I hope your brothers get here by tonight."

Joe didn't bother to say it, but he hoped so too.

--

_AN/ /What sort of horrible trouble has Lil' Joe gotten himself into THIS time? __Actually, I don't know where this story is going yet. I began this in a notebook a few days ago because I desperately needed a distraction at the time. I wasn't exactly bitten by a plot bunny or anything, I just needed to write, so I could politely ignore everyone, and NOT bite someone's head off! My immediate and extended family was driving me CRAZY and I was stuck in the same house with them! Don't get me wrong, I love my family very, very much, but there are times... _

_So, this tale may be the result of relative-induced madness__, and as such, will most likely be short on detail, plot, and description__. Time will tell... :P I've also discovered that I desperately need a __detailed __map of the Ponderosa... so if I'm way off in my geography, I'll try to fix it later. As it is, I'll probably have a LOT of things to fix later. __Or, maybe I'll just write another, better Bonanza story! :P Yep, I like that idea. :)_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Adam was vaguely aware of the weight of the money in his saddle bag as he and Hoss rode toward the appointed place. The ones that had taken his brother had not demanded a small amount. He was even more aware of the weight of responsibility that had settled on his shoulders since Joe's abduction. Over the past hour, Hoss's good-natured attempts to draw him out of moody silence had been met with... moody silence. He appreciated his younger brother's efforts to cheer him up, but his mind was on Joe's safety. After awhile, Hoss gave up, respecting his brother's silence.

The ransom note had directed them to a place twenty-five miles north of their home, at the far end of a small canyon. They could not get there fast enough to satisfy Adam, but they had left in plenty of time to reach the place before the specified time ran out.

More than anything, Adam wished for the calming presence of his father, but he was on the cattle drive and would not be back for three more weeks. Normally, Ben Cartwright took one or all of his sons on a drive, but it had been different this time. That meant Adam was in charge of things, and he had let his youngest brother out of sight long enough for him to get in trouble. That didn't mean it was his fault. Adam had warned Joe about the girl. His natural insight had told him that there was something wrong about her, but Little Joe hadn't listened. Not unusual, but maddening all the same.

"Adam?"

Adam shook his head, realizing that Hoss had probably said his name at least three times while he had been lost in thought. "What is it, Hoss?"

"I thought I saw somethin' move, up there yonder." They were nearing the canyon-land and Hoss pointed to a rocky rise above their heads, obscured by thick brush and a few trees.

Adam shaded his eyes and looked where Hoss had pointed. "I don't see anything." He said after a minute.

"No, I guess not. Maybe I'm just jumpy." Hoss shrugged his massive shoulders dismissively.

A second later, a shot rang out and Hoss's horse went down. Adam wheeled his horse around to help his brother when something slammed into the back of his head.

--

"Adam? Come on big brother, wake up! Come on, that's it." Slowly the familiar voice filtered into Adam's fuzzy conscious. Without opening his eyes, he tried to sit up. It was a mistake. Pain exploded through his skull and Hoss pushed him back down. "Easy, Adam. Stay put for a minute. You're gonna have a lump the size of Texas where that feller hit you!"

"What..." Adam tried to sort out his thoughts, but everything was mixed up. "Hoss, what happened?" he opened his eyes cautiously and was startled to see the sun had moved behind the canyon wall. "What time is it?" He sat up again, this time with help from Hoss.

"Somebody jumped us, Adam."

"Did you see them?"

"I didn't see a thing. They chucked a rock at me, same as you. I've just got a harder head than you. I wasn't out as long." Hoss rubbed the back of his head ruefully.

Adam gave him a small smile. "How's your horse?"

Hoss's face fell. "He's dead, Adam. They shot him right out from under me. Your horse is all right, but they took your saddle bag and the rifle. All the money's gone."

Adam felt his heart begin to pound in time with his head as the full realization of their situation hit him. He glanced up at the sky. They had approximately two hours before the deadline, and now, no ransom money.

"Hoss-"

"Maybe we could talk to 'em, Adam. Maybe they won't kill Little Joe like they said. Might'a been a bluff."

"Maybe. But its not a chance I'm willing to take." Adam bit his lip, thinking. "I've got to get Little Joe out of there."

"You're not goin' without me." Hoss protested.

"Hoss, we've got less than two hours, barely enough time to get to the rendezvous point. We can't ride double, and we certainly don't have time to get back home and come back. My guess is that they've got Joe in one of the the old mining cabins down at the end of the canyon. I can try to sneak in and get him out."

"Adam, if they see you, they'll kill you."

"Do you have a better idea, Hoss?" Adam's frustration was rapidly overtaking his temper. "If we don't do something, they could kill Joe. I have to try."

Hoss wasn't happy about it, Adam could tell that plainly from the deep frown on his brother's gentle face, but he offered no more objections. "All right, Adam. Its about nine miles to the cabin. I won't get there too fast walking, but you go along and I'll follow quick as I can."

Adam nodded and stood to get his horse. "You be careful, Hoss. We don't know how many there are."

"Be careful yourself." Hoss clapped his brother's shoulder affectionately, nearly knocking him off the horse he had just mounted. "You aren't bullet proof."

--

_AN// Now before someone shoots me, I did NOT kill off Hoss's regular horse (Chub, I think?)! I wouldn't do that; I'm not THAT mean. ; ) No, it was some poor expendable horse that I didn't even bother to name for fear of becoming attached._


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

The inner room of the mining cabin was windowless, the only light coming from cracks in the derelict ceiling or door. Little Joe had no reliable way of keeping track of time, but when the light dimmed in the ceiling cracks, it was safe to assume that afternoon was slipping into evening. He knew that if his brothers didn't bring the ransom money by dark, he was in deep trouble.

What bothered him was that he knew his brothers well enough to know that they should have been here by now. Ally Forster had said they had received the message the day before, and they wouldn't have wasted any time... unless they were so mad at him they didn't care. Joe allowed a slight smile at that thought. They'd be mad all right; mad enough to wallop him, but it wouldn't stop them from coming for him. Something was wrong.

A moment later he heard the outer door open and at least two people entered the main room of the cabin. They were talking agitatedly and it was a moment before Joe could sort out any of the words.

"We should have stuck to the original plan. There's no reason for it. We could have gotten away quietly; if we go through with it, we'll have the rest of the Cartwrights out after us!" A nervous male voice said excitedly.

"You're a fool, and a coward as well, Wyatt." The contemptuous voice of Miss Forster cut in. "This way, we have the money and no witnesses. Neither of the Cartwrights saw Emmet and Dal when they took the money. Now all we have to do is take care of Joe and get out of here quickly. If you haven't got the stomach for it..."

Joe stopped listening, stunned at what he had heard. His brothers had been bushwhacked and his captors were planning to kill him. This was not turning into a very good day.

A moment later he heard the outer door slam and his own door opened. Miss Forster walked in, her cheeks flushed prettily from her argument. "I suppose you heard everything."

"Every word." Joe said stonily. Calm. He had to stay calm. He had talked his way out of a lot of things before. Maybe he could talk his way out of this. "What have you got to gain by killing me? You think I'll stop you?"

"I don't want to kill you, Little Joe. But it is necessary. Your brothers have no direct proof against me, only suspicion-- without you. I'm sorry."

"Lady, you're not making much sense. Even if you kill me, you think my brothers are just going to let you off?"

She knelt down in front of him again, far out of reach of his boots if he decided to try anything. Her expression was icy. "I promise you, Little Joe, if either of your brothers come anywhere close enough to make trouble, they will be killed."

Joe smiled. "You don't know my brothers very well, do you?"

"I know that there's nothing they can do to help you." Miss Forster said coldly. "You'd better make your peace. You don't have much time left." She stood abruptly and left, leaving Little Joe in the darkness of the inner room. So much for talking his way out of the situation.

Heart pounding he worked at the ropes again until he felt his wrists bleed. It was no use. They were tied too tight. He slumped against the beam, trying to think of some other plan.

He nearly yelped out loud when the door opened again. He had been so occupied with his thoughts he had not heard the outer door at all. In the dark of the room, all Joe could see was a tall dark figure and his heart began to pound faster.

"Joe?" the familiar voice whispered.

"Adam!" Joe's relief was evident in his voice.

Adam moved around behind him and Joe heard his brother pull his knife from its sheath. "Joseph Cartwright, when I get you back home, Hoss and I are going to take turns knocking some sense into your thick skull! And that's _before_ Pa gets hold of you!"

"Good to see you too, Adam." Little Joe smirked. Adam paused in his rope cutting long enough to cuff the back of his brother's head.

"Are you hurt?"

"No. Just hungry and stiff. Where's Hoss?"

"He's all right. They shot his horse, and he had to stay behind-"

Both brothers froze as the door banged open, letting in the scarce light of evening. Emmet stood in the doorway, the dim light glinting dully on the nickel of his drawn gun. "Well," He said slowly, "I don't know how you snuck in here, Cartwright, but you just signed your own death warrant."

The darkness was broken by the flame and thunder of the gun and Adam crumpled to the floor.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

For a full three seconds, Joe was too shocked to speak, then everything hit him at once. "No! Adam!" Joe's voice broke with terror and he wrenched his arms against the ropes. Adam must have nearly had him loose because one desperate pull snapped him free of the bonds.

Ignoring the man in the doorway, Joe crawled to his brother. "Adam?" Joe's trembling hands found the ominous moisture of blood soaking the front of Adam's black shirt. In the dark it took him a minute to find the actual wound just below his brother's right collarbone. Despite the close range, the bullet had not gone clear through. It was lodged deeply in Adam's shoulder.

"Adam? Come on, talk to me, please!" Frantically, Joe yanked off his jacket and pressed the hastily wadded fabric over the wound.

"What do you... want me to say?" The words were forced from between Adam's tight-clenched teeth. His eyes were shut and his entire face twisted in agony. Joe was surprised he was still conscious.

"Just stay with me, brother. I'll get you out of here somehow." Joe gritted his teeth as Adam groaned softly, wondering just how on earth he was going to do that.

"Touching." Ally had joined Emmet in the doorway, and was looking at them with a sneering expression that transformed her face into acute ugliness. If his arms hadn't been full of Adam, Joe would have liked to wrap his hands around her throat and squeeze.

She turned to her cohort. "Leave them here for now. He won't last long with a bullet in his shoulder, and _if_ you guard the door this time," She glared meaningfully at the man. "Joe won't be going anywhere either. The other one should be coming along soon. We'll have to take care of him as well, since you bungled everything."

The door slammed shut again, leaving the two brothers in absolute darkness.

"Joe..."

"Right here, Adam." Joe tried to keep his voice steady, but the moment the door had closed his optimism had practically disappeared. He had no ideas and was terrified that his brother was going to bleed to death in his arms. He couldn't even see to do anything about it.

"You've got to...get out of here... before they find Hoss." Adam's voice had begun hoarse and weak, but as he spoke, it seemed to gain strength by sheer determination. "Joe, they didn't take my gun."

Little Joe blinked as realization hit him. "They didn't..." for a moment, hope filled him, then it was quickly dashed by rationalism. "Adam, even with your gun, one of them would shoot us before we got out."

Adam laughed softly. "I haven't got much to lose. You can get out, Joe. You have to try, before Hoss gets here. They've proven they're killers."

"I'm not going anywhere without you." Joe said firmly, tightening his hold on Adam's good shoulder.

"Joe-"

"I'm not! Don't even say that!" It was a whisper, but the intensity and stubbornness in Joe's voice might as well have made it a shout. He was worried about Hoss too, but Hoss could look after himself; Adam, at the moment, could not.

"Joseph Cartwright, shut up and listen to me!" Adam sounded so much like their father that Little Joe actually did shut his mouth.

"Think, Joe. Where are we?"

Joe sighed. "Adam, you need to rest."

"Do you remember when you were six years old and I took you up here with me to work that summer?"

"Yes..."

"Remember what you found?" Adam's voice was still firm, but his breathing was becoming labored and Joe could feel him sweating through the shirt fabric. At first, Joe thought his brother was sinking into delirium, but he suddenly remembered one of the highlights of that particular summer trip. He caught his breath.

"The tunnel!"

--

_AN// I know, its really short. The chapters get longer later on, believe me._


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

_eleven years earlier_

"Adam, Adam! A-aaaadam!" the incessant little voice grew in volume and intensity and could no longer be ignored. Adam pushed his hat back from his face and sat up from where he had been trying to take a short, peaceful nap before getting back to fixing the fence line. Taking Little Joe along had at first seemed like a good idea. Now, after only three days alone with him, Adam was ready to throw his kid brother in the river.

"What?!"

"Adam, come here. Look what I found!"

"Little Joe, can't you just..." Adam rolled his eyes skyward. _Just what? Act twice your age? Sit still while you're NOT asleep? Go explore a badger den?_

"Come on, pleeeeeease, Adam! You're so boring, all you've been doin' is fixing fence all day!" Joe's voice had become a whine and Adam felt like whining right back. _Pleeeeeease, Joe, you're so annoying, all you've been doing is talking ALL DAY!_

But instead he stood up and walked toward Little Joe, allowing his irked expression to speak for him. "All right. What's so amazing?"

"Come on, I'll show you." Little Joe grabbed his big brother's hand and pulled him toward the cabin at the other side of the meadow near the canyon.

"This better not take long." Adam growled, lengthening his stride to keep up with his enthusiastic brother. Despite his protests, Adam was glad to see the six-year-old so full of life. It had been only a few short years since Marie's death, and there for a while it had seemed like Joe would never smile again. Now, Adam was having a hard time keeping up with his high spirits.

"Hurry it up, will ya?" Little Joe called over his shoulder as he broke into a run for the cabin ahead. Adam had had enough. As soon as Little Joe turned his back, he sprang forward into a sprint, easily passing his short brother who shouted in dismay.

Adam leaned lazily against the cabin wall until Joe caught up. "What's the idea?!" Little Joe protested, breathing hard from the run, and angry at being beaten.

"You told me to hurry." Adam replied innocently.

"Not that much." Little Joe muttered.

"What was it you wanted to show me?" Adam cocked an eyebrow at his frowning brother, hoping the run had used up some of the six year old's excess energy. Not likely.

"Come on. Its inside the cabin."

The cabin was old and run down, and Adam and Little Joe had opted to spend their nights under the stars rather than inside the stuffy structure. It would come into use if the weather turned sour during their stay.

Adam found himself slightly curious as he followed Little Joe through the door. What had the boy managed to find in the empty cabin that was so interesting?

The child led him through the first room of the cabin and into the inner room, which had probably been used as sleeping quarters in its day, judging from the small size and lack of windows. A single beam ran from floor to ceiling at the center, its original use a mystery unless it had been added to shore up a sagging roof at some point. Adam didn't speculate for long; he was too distracted by the large hole in the floor.

"What did you _do_, little brother?"

Little Joe shrugged. "You told me it was a miner's cabin. I figured maybe they had some gold hidden under the floor, like in those stories Pa read. So I started lookin'."

"Was it necessary to tear up the floor?" Adam regarded his brother with renewed annoyance. It wasn't as if the cabin was being used, but he didn't want Joe to get the idea that he could be wantonly destructive.

"I didn't have to, Adam. The boards were already loose. I just slid my knife in the cracks and they pulled up easy." Little Joe seemed proud of himself, though Adam was at a loss to understand why. It certainly wasn't a huge feat to pull up a few floorboards.

"And this is what you wanted to show me?"

"No." Little Joe sighed and rolled his eyes as if seeking help from the heavens, just as Adam had been doing recently. "Look closer, big brother. Are you blind?"

Adam moved to stand next to Little Joe, whacking him softly over the back of his head for the remark and finally saw what his brother had found. Where Joe had pulled up the boards was not just old, dusty earth a few feet down as Adam would have expected, but a rather deep hole. The cabin had been built over a mine shaft. A ladder was standing against one side and Adam judged the height from the top of the hole to the bottom to be a few feet taller than he was, but in the dim light it was hard to see exactly.

"Well, that's interesting." he said in a low voice.

"Told you so." Little Joe smirked triumphantly. Adam aimed another smack at him, but the boy ducked out of the way this time. "Do you suppose there's gold in there?"

"I doubt it, Joe. They probably just used it as a cellar."

"Adam, you're no fun!" Joe pouted. "I wanna see if there's gold."

Adam opened his mouth to tell the child all the logical reasons why there was probably no gold in the shaft. But when he caught a glimpse at Little Joe's disappointed green eyes, huge with dreams of treasure and adventure, he relented.

"All right. We can look. But you're going to have to go back to camp and get those torches I brought with us and the matches out of my saddle bag. I'm not exploring in the dark."

Little Joe let out an Indian whoop and raced from the cabin, leaving Adam shaking his head. How did he do it? It was even worse with Hoss. As soon as Joe flashed that puppy look at the middle Cartwright, Hoss would have given Joe the moon if he asked for it. Adam was harder to win over, but certainly not immune.

When Little Joe came back, Adam carefully lit one of the torches and slid the others into his belt where he could reach them easily if needed. Then he looked at the ladder dubiously. It had been many years since this cabin had been used for its original purpose. The ladder was certainly older than Adam, and possibly even older than his father. He would probably break his neck.

Little Joe moved forward enthusiastically. "I'll go first!"

Adam threw his arm in front of Little Joe, clothes-lining him. "Oh no you won't."

Joe glared at his older brother but didn't protest as Adam lowered himself onto the ladder. It creaked and groaned, but held until Adam reached the bottom. "All right, Joe. Go slow and careful."

Ignoring the warning, the boy slipped quickly down the ladder with keen agility and stood smiling next to Adam. "You worry too much."

_Not with you around_. Adam thought.

Adam expected the shaft to have been blocked off, so as to be only wide enough for storage uses. He was surprised to find that the area opened up into a wide tunnel in a northerly direction. Little Joe saw it and Adam knew there would be no backing out of exploration now.

"Come on, Adam. There's got to be treasure in here. Otherwise, why would they have made it so big?" Joe eagerly tugged at his brother's arm.

Adam halted Little Joe's movement firmly. "Listen to me, Little Joe. If you don't quit jumping around, you could bring the whole thing down on us. Now I'll come with you to look, but you have to be careful and _quiet_." He reluctantly released his hold on Little Joe's shirt collar.

"All right." Joe agreed sullenly. As soon as Adam released him, he sprang ahead excitedly, dutifully remaining quiet.

With a roll of his eyes, Adam followed with the torch casting golden shadows on the smoothed walls.

Joe gradually got ahead of Adam, remaining within sight only because he couldn't see without Adam's torch. They had come about a quarter mile from their starting point.

"Hey, Adam, hurry up and bring the light! I found a hole and I think there's something inside."

When Adam caught up to Little Joe, the boy had his head down by the floor near a fair sized hole in the wall. Adam knelt down closer to see what his brother had found.

"Adam, what's that noise?" Joe asked in a puzzled voice, lifting his hand to reach inside the small space.

Adam listened for a second then froze as he realized what the strange, dry rattling sound meant.

"Joe, don't move." he whispered.

Little Joe caught the note of alarm in his brother's voice. "How come?"

"Because that's a rattlesnake den."

Little Joe laid completely still, his eyes wide in the dancing light of Adam's torch. Now that his eyes had adjusted, he could see the huge snake not a foot away from his outstretched hand, coiled and rattling angrily.

Adam had seen it too. He knew he had only seconds to act before it would be too too late for his brother. "Don't move, Little Joe." He whispered again. As quickly as he could without startling the snake, Adam reached for his gun. He was at the correct angle, and at this close range, it would be difficult to miss. In the confined space, there was a danger of the bullet ricocheting, but considering the more imminent threat that had its eyes locked on Little Joe, Adam decided it was a calculated risk.

Little Joe jumped violently when Adam's gun went off so near him. He hadn't been able to see what his brother was doing, but he did see the snake thrashing in its death throes as Adam's bullet nearly tore its head off. He quickly picked himself up and dove for his brother.

"Are you hurt?" Adam looked him over quickly.

"No." Little Joe answered breathlessly. "That was some shot, Adam!"

Adam raised an eyebrow. "Three feet away? I think not. Come on. We've been down here long enough and that probably isn't the only snake." He stood up and re-holstered his Colt.

"Aw, Adam! We aint done explorin'!" Little Joe protested.

Adam was out of patience. "Joe, you were nearly bitten by a rattlesnake! Do you have any idea what a rattlesnake bite would do to you?"

Little Joe pouted unhappily. "I'm not afraid of a dumb old snake!"

Adam blinked in disbelief. The boy had never in his life been so close to death and he wanted to explore further. _Heaven help us when he turns sixteen and decides he's bullet proof as well. _Adam thought, rolling his eyes.

"No, Little Joe. Not this time. Besides, I've got more work to do on that fence line."

"But-"

"Joe! Get your tail end up that ladder!"

--

_AN// Hmm... kind of a long chapter/rabbit trail. But it was a chance to write six year old Little Joe and I just couldn't resist! Funny, his cuteness didn't wear off with eleven years! :) _


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

It took Joe what seemed like hours to find the exact places in the old floorboards to pick up using Adam's knife. He wanted to do it smoothly so as to make it look like they had disappeared into thin air, but he was racing against time. He had no idea when one of their captors might take it upon himself to look in on them, and if that happened, they were out of chances as far as Joe was concerned. Adam had passed out not long after Joe remembered the tunnel, and though the wound in his shoulder had stopped bleeding quite so profusely, he would need medical attention before long.

Finally, Joe had enough boards out of the way for he and Adam to get down the ladder. Now came the tricky part.

Crawling back over to Adam, Joe shook him gently. "Adam, wake up."

Adam groaned, then tensed under Joe's touch. "Joe?"

"I'm right here, brother." Joe held Adam's arm firmly, trying to reassure him. He realized that waking up in the dark after being shot would be disconcerting to say the least. "Can you stand? I've got the boards pulled up."

"Joe, you don't have time to help me." Adam murmured hoarsely. "You have to warn Hoss. Get going!"

"Not. Without. You." Joe said succinctly.

"What are you planning to do, carry me down the ladder?" Adam said fiercely, annoyed that his brother was being so stubborn.

Joe smiled slightly. "No, but I might throw you down if you don't quit arguing." Careful of his brother's injury, Joe slid Adam's good arm over his shoulder and helped him to stand, supporting him around the waist. He couldn't see Adam's face in the dark, but his brother's muscles were taut, and Joe guessed he was struggling against immense pain.

"How'd you get to be so pig-headed?" Adam muttered tightly.

"I get it from my brother." Joe smirked.

Despite his protests, Adam managed to climb one-handed down the ladder after Joe. Arguing with his brother seemed to have revived him somewhat. He came close to falling the last few feet, but Joe heard him lose his grip and reached up to steady him.

After Adam was safely at the bottom, Joe climbed back up and balanced precariously while sliding the boards back into place above his head.

"There. Someone's going to throw a fit when they find us gone." Joe said with grim satisfaction as he finished the job and slid back down the ladder. He felt around in the dark until he found Adam, leaning heavily against the wall. Joe's heart skipped with worry for his brother, but he wasted no time in pulling Adam's arm over his own shoulder to help him again.

"How we doin' Adam?" He whispered.

"You ask the dumbest questions sometimes." Adam winced. "And don't tell me you get that from me too, because you don't."

"Whatever you say." Joe smiled. If Adam was feeling good enough to tease him then Joe's previous question was answered.

They moved along the tunnel in slow silence for a while, Joe feeling their way carefully along the wall with his free hand. He tried to keep them going as quickly as possible, knowing that they needed to get to Hoss before the others did, but in the pitch darkness and with Adam leaning on him, their pace was slower than Joe would have liked.

"I think this is about where we turned around last time." Joe whispered when he estimated that they had gone about a quarter mile. "Let's just hope the snakes have moved."

Adam snorted.

Joe was sincerely hoping that they would _not_ run into any reptiles when he felt something brush against his boot. The thing moved-- and it hissed. Joe sucked in his breath and wasted no time in kicking at the animal as hard as he could. He heard a dull thud as the body hit the opposite wall. "Hey Adam," he laughed nervously. "I think I just took care of our snake."

"Think again, little brother." Adam whispered tightly. There's another one coiled against my foot."

"Kick it!" Joe hissed.

"I can't. There's more than one."

Joe listened, and heard the ominous hissing of several snakes. He took a deep breath. "What do we do?"

"Don't move. I'm thinking."

Adam was not only thinking, he was bleeding again as well. And the sweat that was soaking his shirt was only half because of their tense situation. He could almost feel himself slipping into oblivion again, and the only thing keeping him on his feet was Little Joe, and the knowledge that if he passed out here, he was dead.

"Adam, let's run." Joe whispered. "If we move fast enough they might miss us; if we stand here any longer they're gonna get us anyway."

"You think you can move faster than a bunch of _rattlesnakes_?" Adam asked incredulously. And here he thought it was only his own head that was swimming. But that was Joe. Blind leaps in the dark were nothing new to him. Adam was the thinker, the analyzer. But thought and analysis weren't getting him anywhere in this case.

"Most of the noise is coming from the other side of you over there. There's only a couple of them in front of us."

"It only takes one." Adam remarked drily.

"Is that one still by your boot?"

"No... I think it moved off." Adam took a deep breath, hoping he was right. "All right, Joe. When I tell you, we move--fast." That was one of the problems with this plan. Joe could probably move fast enough; he did everything fast, but Adam was having trouble remaining upright.

"Go!"

Joe grabbed Adam firmly and the two of them sprang ahead with all the speed they could muster. It was one of the worst experiences of Adam's existence. Besides being unable to see an inch ahead of him, he could hear the snapping of several sets of deadly fangs right at his feet, along with a cacophony of angry hissing. Once, he felt a blunt head hit his boot and hoped that the thick leather would protect he and Joe from the poison.

The next thing he realized was that Joe had allowed them to stop and was fretfully asking him if he was all right. "Fine...Joe..." He murmured as he lost the battle with his injured body and sagged against the wall.

--

_AN// I haven't the faintest clue whether you can actually hear a rattler's fangs snap when it strikes, but it seemed dramatic. *shrug* _

_Oh, and by the way, don't go around kicking rattlesnakes. Not a good idea. Only Joe would do something like that, and we all know that Joe isn't the brightest Cartwright on the Ponderosa. *grin*_


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_AN// Eh... in chapter two I said Hoss had fifteen miles to walk. I realized that was a bit too far to go (I don't always think things through very well when I'm in the midst of a writing frenzy) So, I changed it to nine miles. If you still think that's too far, go for a walk and see how far you can walk per hour. Then, pretend you're Hoss. : )_

_The second chappie has been revised to match._

_--_

Nine miles was a long way on foot; but Hoss Cartwright had never been one to let a little thing like distance stand between himself and a desired goal. His strong, solid legs were easily eating up the distance over the uneven, rocky countryside, and he estimated that he would meet up with Adam in less than an hour--if all went well and Adam hadn't gotten himself into trouble. Always a possibility, but if there was anyone more determined than Hoss it was his older brother. He would do everything he could to get Little Joe out of danger and headed for home. It simply remained for Hoss to find _both of them _and make sure they got there in one piece.

He rounded a tall stand of juniper and pulled up short when the moonlight illuminated the figures of two people--not his brothers--standing next to a tall jutting rock not twelve feet away from him. Down the path behind them a ways, he could make out the dark shape of the miner's cabin that Adam had talked about. He was apparently closer than he had first thought.

They might have heard him approach, but they were too busy arguing with one another and Hoss carefully moved farther back into the bushes and crouched out of sight, listening.

"I don't' _know_ if they went this way!" A decidedly female voice whispered harshly. "I told you, for all I know they disappeared into thin air. They could be anywhere!"

"We got to find them Ally. If they get back to the sheriff, these hills will be swarming with a posse!" A man's voice whispered back angrily.

"You think I don't know that?! We've just got to keep looking until we find them. They can't have gone far. We've got to look out for the other one too. He's bound to be around here somewhere." The girl continued in her clipped, frustrated tone. "Emmet, you go in that direction and I'll go south. If you see them, don't waste time, or bullets. Got it?"

"You're the boss, Ally." The man's voice dripped with sarcasm as he mounted his horse and rode east away from the canyon.

The girl, tense with anger, moodily grabbed the reins of her horse and began leading it south toward the stand of juniper.

As the girl passed his hiding place, Hoss snaked out a hand and caught her carefully around the throat, with just enough pressure applied to let her know that screaming would be a bad idea. He removed her gun with his other hand. "Now you make one sound and I'll just put my whole fist in your mouth, young lady." Hoss promised dangerously. He had no intention of actually harming her, but it would not hurt to scare her a little.

Ally's eyes were wide and terrified as well as angry at being taken unawares. She knew she didn't have a slim chance against Hoss.

"Now, what do you know about my brothers?"

"I'm not telling you anything!" Ally hissed angrily. She nevertheless held deathly still, well aware of the large hand holding her neck.

"All right. If that's the way you want it, you'll just have to come along while I find 'em, I reckon."

At this, the girl did start to thrash in his grip, but Hoss merely put one hand over her mouth and steered her to her horse with the other. "Missy, I don't like havin' to man-handle a lady, but the way I figure it, you're not much of one anyway, so you just better quit yer squirmin' and come along easy."

Ally did not 'come along easy' but that didn't stop Hoss from gagging her firmly and tying her hands. He was getting ready to hoist her back onto her horse to lead when a shout rang out from the direction of the cabin. "Ally, we found where the Cartwrights got out. There's a shaft under this cabin and they found it. We'll have 'em out in no time. They aint got no torches."

Hoss thought fast. He had never been in the cabin itself, but he remembered seeing the entrance to a mine shaft in this area a few years ago. It seemed probable that it was one and the same if it connected to the cabin.

He pushed Ally aboard her horse and took its reins, leading it away from the cabin. He noted with satisfaction that there was a nice Winchester stuck in the rifle holster of Ally's saddle. He could certainly make use of that. He would have to go around and do some fancy zigzagging in order to avoid being seen, but he knew this area far better than any of the men he was tying to avoid.

Besides that, he had a valuable hostage.

--

"Adam? Adam come on! I can't even see if you were bit." Joe clenched his teeth in frustration. Worry was screaming through him at every shallow breath coming from his motionless brother. Adam had said he was fine, but with a bullet in his shoulder would he even notice if he had been hit by a rattler? "Your idea of 'fine' and my idea of 'fine' aint matchin' up right now, brother." he muttered.

Failing to wake his brother, Joe crouched against the wall next to him, trying to decide what to do. He had been full of confidence at first, but when Adam passed out after their flight from the snakes, Joe was forced to see the hopelessness of their situation.

"I wish you'd wake up." He said quietly, keeping his hand on his brother's wrist so that he could feel the reassuring beat of his pulse, hoping desperately that it wouldn't suddenly stop. "You always know what to do. I can't even see in here. For all I know, we could walk right into a bottomless hole. Or maybe the tunnel dead-ends." He sighed heavily and ran a hand through his hair. He felt like a helpless five-year-old. Had this really been the tunnel he had wanted so badly to explore as a child? Now it felt like a death trap.

"I sure could use some well-educated advice, older brother." He murmured. Adam still didn't stir, so Joe finally got up and walked along the wall for a few yards, carefully exploring with his hands and feet along each side and in the center. As far as he could tell, the tunnel was still going straight from where they had started, but he had no way of knowing how long it would go; if they would ever reach the end.

He glanced back toward Adam, even though he couldn't see him. He had carried his brother once before, when Adam had been wounded by Indians, but at the time, Joe had had so much adrenaline pumping through his system he probably could have carried Hoss. He didn't know if he could do it again.

As his eyes were turned toward Adam, he caught sight of a faint light far down the tunnel at the same moment his ears caught the sound of echoing voices. "Oh no." He murmured, quickly going back to his brother. "Adam! Wake up, come on!"

Adam groaned but showed no signs of waking fully. Joe made up his mind quickly. Taking hold of Adam's left arm, he pulled his brother over his shoulders in a rescue hold. Standing up proved to be a difficulty though. Joe had never been so aware of his smaller size.

Feeling his way along was nearly impossible while keeping Adam on his back, so he was forced to go more slowly than he would have liked. His pursuers had torches and they would be coming fast, but Joe was hoping the rattlesnakes were slow them down; perhaps permanently.

He couldn't help a small, grim smile when the voices behind him turned into high pitched yells of terror. Gunshots were heard a moment later and Joe wondered if by chance they might all just shoot each other by accident in the confined space.

Joe was so occupied with his thoughts and the occasional glance behind them to gauge the distance of their pursuers that he forgot to pay attention to his footing. The tunnel floor had been smooth and straight so far, but as Joe put his foot down, suddenly, there was no floor. With a startled yelp, he pitched forward.

--

_AN/ Hmm... the chapters appear to be getting longer..._


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

They did not fall into a bottomless pit, which had been Joe's first terrified thought when he lost his balance. It turned out to be an incline. While an incline was certainly better than a bottomless pit, it was still steep enough to send the brothers rolling head over heels.

Joe lost his hold on Adam almost immediately. When his body stopped rolling, he found himself lying face-down on the rocky ground, aching all over, but with a sharp, insistent pain throbbing in his wrist. He groaned and opened his eyes, hoping that the plunge hadn't finished killing off his brother.

"Adam?" he croaked.

"Little Joe, I realize we don't always get along, but throwing me around is _not_ the best way to take out your frustration."

Joe laughed joyfully at the dry-humored, groggy voice. He never would have thought a tumble would bring his brother back to consciousness. "Adam! Are you all right?" Joe crawled painfully toward the voice.

"I've had better days."

Joe found Adam lying on his back a few feet away and quickly checked him over by feel with his usable hand. Fortunately, it was his right wrist that was injured--a small blessing since he would need his stronger hand, though he would have preferred to forgo the whole thing.

He grinned slightly despite their situation, finding his brother no worse off than before. "Adam, if you can gripe, you're all right."

"How long was I out?" Adam asked in a more serious tone.

"About fifteen minutes." Joe said absently, experimentally trying to move his wrist. It was a mistake and he gasped sharply.

"Joe, are you hurt?"

"I'm all right. I think I sprained my wrist. Do you think you can walk with my help again?"

Adam drew breath to reply when he heard the sounds behind them. "They found our escape route."

"I know. They ran into the rattlers just before we fell. We gotta get moving. It won't take them long." Joe carefully resumed his position beneath Adam's left arm and helped him to stand, trying to keep his own injured limb from being bumped in the process.

"And do you know which direction we're supposed to be going?" Adam asked in that tone that Joe could easily imagine being coupled with a raised eyebrow.

Joe growled in frustration and felt around until he found the nearest wall. The fall had disoriented him, but he was fairly certain he could keep them going--hopefully without anymore incidents. "You just walk. Let me navigate."

Joe got them moving faster this time, but slowly enough to feel their way in front. After a minute, the wall curved, and as Joe turned them around a sharp corner, he was pleased to see a starry sky ahead of him. "Hey, Adam, look! We're almost out."

Adam didn't answer, but Joe felt him lift his head to look. He knew his brother was fighting immense pain, even if he was conscious at the moment. He could only hope that he could get Adam home before things got worse. He could feel unnatural heat pouring from his brother's body, and his muscles were painfully tense as he clung to Joe.

"Hold on, brother. I'll get you home."

Without warning, torchlight blossomed behind them and a harsh voice stopped Joe in his tracks. "Hold it right there, Cartwright."

Joe felt frustration pulse through him. He hadn't been fast enough.

Positioning himself carefully in front of Adam, Joe slowly turned to face their attackers. As he did so, he reached around Adam's waist with his right hand for Adam's gun, wincing in pain as he forced his swollen fingers to move. He didn't think he could move fast enough to get them both; not in the dark and with his right hand so stiff and sore. But he was sure going to try.

He was puzzled when his fingers brushed an empty holster. He was sure the gun had been there earlier, but a second later, he felt the cold steel pressed into his left hand by Adam. "Don't miss, Little Joe." He breathed.

With wicked smiles on their faces, Emmet and Dal raised their guns. "Sorry boys, but we can't have witnesses." Emmet's tone of voice was anything but apologetic. " 'sides that, you led us right into a rattler den and poor Wyatt got hit twice. He's dead. So I figure you two will have to make up for it."

Joe took a deep breath, getting ready to push Adam out of the way even if it wouldn't help in the long run, but he felt Adam grip his shoulder tightly.

Quick as summer lightning, Joe brought the gun up and fired, at the same time dragging himself and Adam to the ground. Several more shots rang out and Joe was vaguely aware that at least two of them came from behind him, but the searing heat of a bullet grazing his thigh and his own fast shooting left no room for coherent thought. He kept firing until the cylinder was empty and both the men that had threatened them were lying still on the ground.

"Joe?" The welcome sound of Hoss's voice rang out from behind them. Joe looked up and saw his brother's large form outlined against the dark sky, a Winchester in his hands, covering the bandits. "You and Adam all right?"

"I'm all right, Hoss, but Adam's hurt."

Hoss came down the short slope and checked the two bandits. "One of 'em's dead. The other 'un looks pretty bad, but I think he'll make it." He removed their guns and went to his brothers. "What happened to Adam?"

"Shot in the shoulder." Joe said grimly, kneeling over his brother. Adam was conscious, but lay still where he and Joe had fallen.

"I got the gal over the hill a bit. We'll have to bring her and the other one in to the sheriff, but we gotta get Adam home first." Hoss started to pick Adam up.

"No, Hoss," Adam protested weakly, trying to push him away and get up. "I can walk."

Hoss shook his head with a small smile. "Big brother, I know it hurts your pride, but if you don't let me carry you awhile, there's gonna be a lot more hurtin' than that."

Adam sighed and quit fighting, letting his younger bother wrap him gently in his arms and lift him. He was too tired and hurt to be forceful.

Hoss carried him to the place he had left Ally, tied hand and foot and propped against a tree near the horse. She glared daggers at Joe, limping along behind his brothers. Joe ignored her, but he felt some satisfaction in the reversal of their positions.

"Joe, you get on up first, and I'll put Adam up with you. I want you to get back to the house, send one of the hands for the doctor, and as soon as you can, get the buckboard and come for me and these two." Hoss said.

Joe nodded and stiffly mounted the gray. His thigh and wrist were aching and he was dead tired, but he was glad to defer to his brother's plan and get Adam home. He didn't envy Hoss the task of staying in the canyon all night with Ally and her associate, but he knew Hoss was more than capable of handling both of them.

Hoss helped Adam to mount, and Joe pulled him securely against his chest and he soon felt his brother's tense muscles relax. He nodded to Hoss. "See you soon, Hoss. I'll be back in a few hours."


	9. Chapter 9

_AN// Eh.. I'm not at all happy about how I wrote Hop Sing in this chapter. I obviously haven't watched enough episodes with him in there. So, please excuse!_

Epilogue

Hop Sing met them in the yard and helped Joe get Adam into the house and into bed. Joe went to send one of the ranch hands for the doctor, then came back up to check on his brother. He had kept from Hoss the bullet graze on his leg, but Hop Sing noticed. He turned from Adam and shook a finger at Joe. "You hurt. Bleed all over clean floor. Hand hurt too. Sit, and Hop Sing get you fixed up."

Joe smiled wearily and sat in the chair by Adam's bed as Hop Sing began cleaning the bullet graze and wrapping his wrist. He glanced at Adam and saw his brother watching him. Suddenly he felt about ten years old. "Adam, I'm sorry." he whispered.

"For what, Joe?" Adam murmured. Hop Sing had made him as comfortable as possible, but his face was pale and his breathing ragged.

Joe couldn't believe it. "For getting you into this mess! If I had listened to you..." He banged his fist against the chair angrily, causing Hop Sing to slip and scold him. He sighed. "You were hurt because of me." he said quietly.

Adam smiled and laid a hand on Joe's arm. "Well, even if I do agree with the part about you listening to me, it was not your fault, Little Joe."

"But--"

"Joe," Adam said sternly. "Did you fire the gun?'

"No, but--"

"It wasn't your fault. And believe me, having my little brother safe and sound is well worth having a sore shoulder for a few days." Adam grinned. "besides that, you'll have to do my chores for the next few weeks. That should make up for any guilt you might feel."

The regret lifted somewhat from Joe's eyes. "All right, brother. I'll try not to lose sleep over it."

"Good. Because I'm certainly not going to." Adam's face tightened with a wave of pain, and Joe bit his lip.

"Doctor's coming, Adam. Just hang on."

With a groan, Adam slipped again into unconsciousness. Hop Sing looked up at the frowning youngest Cartwright. "You fixed up now. Mister Adam be all right. You see."

Joe sighed. "Thanks." He rose to his feet. "I'm going to go get Hoss. We should be back around first light." he paused by the door and looked back at Adam. "Take care of him, Hop Sing. I hate to leave when he's like this."

"Doctor come while you gone. Mister Adam be all fixed up when you get back."

"I hope so." Joe murmured, slipping from the room. All he wanted was to get everything done so that he could come back.

--

By the time Joe and Hoss returned from bringing Ally and Emmet to the sheriff it was nearly ten in the morning. Tired as they both were, they wasted no time in going up to Adam's room. Paul Martin met them, and they were relieved to see that his face showed no signs of worry.

"Your brother will be fine." he assured them. "The bullet came out smoothly and he should sleep for a while. He has a fever, but I've given Hop Sing instructions about that, and with plenty of rest, and barring infection, he should recover just fine."

Joe and Hoss visibly relaxed, and Joe felt a horrible weight lift from his shoulders.

Dr. Martin picked up his bag. "I'll check back later in the week, Meanwhile, Hop Sing tells me that Joe was grazed by a bullet and sprained his wrist. So you come with me, young man." he ordered, leading the way to Joe's room. "And after that, I want both of you to sleep. You both look like you could use it."

"Just as soon as I snag me some dinner, Doc, I'll be happy to do just that. " Hoss said, yawning.

"Save some for me, Hoss." Joe said, far too tired to even argue with the doctor.

--

After the doctor left, and Hoss was asleep, Joe crept back to Adam's room to check on his brother. He watched the broad chest rising and falling steadily beneath the sheets and listened to the deep, peaceful breathing, feeling his own heart calm as he finally let himself believe that everything would be all right.

"What are you doing in here?" Adam murmured sleepily. "You're breathing louder than Hoss."

Joe grinned. "Sorry Adam. Go back to sleep."

"I thought you said you weren't going to lose any sleep over this."

"I'm not." Joe sighed. "Just makin' sure you were all right." he held his hand up to forestal the argument he could see Adam about to make. "I know that's _your_ job. But I'm just not going to sleep until you tell me you're all right."

Adam smiled up at the narrowed green eyes, fixed on him in the dim light of his room, grateful yet again to be part of a family that cared for each other so much. Grateful for his life, and for the lessening of the ache in his shoulder. Grateful that his youngest brother was safe to make more mistakes and learn from them.

"I'm fine, Joe. Just fine."

END

_AN// Thanks to everyone who read and reviewed! Its great to know that there's still some Bonanza fans out there! I'm planning another BZ story, hopefully longer and BETTER. ; )_


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